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I regained consciousness.
To be precise, I was jolted back to consciousness.
Someone was shaking my body to wake me up.
"Hey, you. Wake up."
"...Who?"
"That's what I should be asking. Why are you collapsed in front of my shop? This place is deep in the back alleys, so even regulars sometimes get lost here."
"I don't know... I don't remember... Where is this? Who am I?"
"Huh? What? Don't tell me you have amnesia? This is going to be a headache..."
"Just kidding."
"Don't joke about that!"
"Sorry."
"You apologize quickly!"
What is it? Why do I get along so well with this guy?
"Anyway, since we've met like this, it must be fate. Let's introduce ourselves. My name is Limus. I'm an ordinary Pallum running a potion shop in Daedalus Street."
No wonder he's short... Now it's my turn.
"I came to Orario to join the Hephaestus Familia... I'm Smith. Just an ordinary human."
"Really? But why were you collapsed in front of my shop?"
"I really don't remember that part... I remember coming to Orario to join the Hephaestus Familia, but nothing beyond that."
"Hmm..."
Damn it, that god isn't very considerate. No, I should be grateful for being sent here... Wait, thinking about it, he sent me here as a reward for saving his life? The after-service is terrible!
"...S, Smith!"
"Ah, yeah. Sorry, I didn't hear. What did you say?"
"If you have nowhere to go, stay at my shop for a while."
"...Are you for real?"
"...Get lost."
"Hey, why so serious, bro? Of course I was joking! I'll impose on you for a while, shamelessly!"
"Only until you join a familia. Once you officially join, get out of the room."
"Thanks! Overwhelming thanks!"
Just like that, I found a good-hearted person and solved my lodging and food. What a relief!
"Ah, one thing: I'm keeping track of the meal costs. If you don't pay back later, I'll find your familia."
"Yes..."
I lost out on the food part of lodging... Damn.
"But why are you being so nice to me? We just met today, right?"
Thinking about it, that's true. No matter how well we get along or that I seem to have partial amnesia, Limus doesn't have to let me stay in his shop. Even if he told me to get lost and closed the door, I couldn't really complain.
"...I also left my hometown and came to Orario like you. About five years ago, I think? After my parents passed away, I had no attachment to my hometown, so I came to Orario alone. And as soon as I arrived, I was robbed by some thugs—they took all my capital, food, emergency funds, everything."
"...So?"
"After being robbed and left with nothing in the back alleys, there was someone who helped me. I was taken in by that person and learned potion-making under their care... But even when they saved me, they were already quite elderly. Three years ago, they passed away after living a full life."
"..."
"They left one last wish: 'If there's someone you can help within your reach, help them as much as you can. It will all come back to you.'"
"...They were a good person."
"Yeah, they were a good person. I'm just helping because I can. If you're grateful, pay it forward. Got it?"
Limus, grinning as he entered the shop, looked really bright.
"...Hey, so what's for dinner tonight? My stomach and back are practically fused together from hunger~"
"I'll just make some soup. I'll make it thinking no one will refuse, so eat it all."
...I think I've made a good friend.
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"...Hey... Smith... Wake up!"
"Five more minutes..."
"If you don't get up now, no food."
"I'm up!"
Second day in Orario. I woke up at Limus's shop [Azure Wind] where I'm staying.
"...It wasn't a dream."
Saving someone and dying, that person being a god's avatar, and finally being reborn in another world by that god's grace...
"It was... all real."
My family too...
"...I'll never see them again."
All alone...
"...I have to move forward alone."
I felt something flowing down my cheek. Probably tears.
I'll never meet my family again.
My father, who was strict but gave a lot of advice while working as a blacksmith; my mother, who would always prepare pain relief patches when I came back from work, saying it's important for someone who uses their body; and my younger sibling, who teased me but always helped when needed—
I can't meet any of them.
Now, I'm all alone.
"Ah... ah..."
I'm breaking down.
All my connections forcibly severed, I'm about to collapse.
I know that if I break down now, I might never get back up, but I have no desire to stop it.
Since there's no one anyway, why not break down...?
"Hey, you bastard!"
An intense pain shook my head, barely holding onto my crumbling mind.
"What are you trying to break down on your own for? Snap out of it!"
"There's no one..."
"What?"
"Even if I break down, there's no one who cares..."
"..."
Friends, family, even people I just knew by name—all gone.
No one remembers me anymore.
No one I remember is left.
I'm alo...
"I'm here!"
"...What?"
"Where do you think you're running off to? You haven't even paid for yesterday's dinner yet! I told you, no matter what happens, I'll get it back! You think you have no reason to live? Live to pay off your debt to me!"
"Ha... hahahaha...!"
That's right, you were there.
Limus, the first person I met and the first friend I made in this city.
A good person who helps those within reach simply because he can.
With a friend like this remembering me, I can't break down...
Above all...
"Debts are meant to be paid...!"
"...Have you come to your senses?"
"Thank you, Limus. I'll definitely pay back the debt."
"...That's enough, come out quickly. The soup will get cold."
...Thank you, my friend.